Focus poem for direct action
Remember the world that makes you.
I will remember the world that makes me.
I will not be chosen. I will choose.
I’ll keep my wits about me, like a flock of starlings.
Starlings are real birds, real people.
They choose, too. Do not forsake me.
I will not forsake you.
The starlings came over. They’re here now.
They fill a place. They make a crowd.
They can teach me, though we’re different people.
I will be part of a crowd moved by the world.
I will lose my way. My way will change
toward what I learn. My way will change me.
Remember to let it change you.
The world and I will wheel and turn.
We inhabit the air together.
And later we lie on the ground, all world.
Remember to dwell in this with me.
I will remember to dwell in this with you.
Edited by Laynie Browne